Aufderheide Drive: Westfir to McKenzie Bridge
58 miles of Forest Road 19 connecting Highway 58 at Westfir to Highway 126 at McKenzie Bridge, a National Scenic Byway through old-growth forest along the North Fork Willamette and McKenzie Rivers. Minimal traffic and, notably, no gas stations or cell service for the entire route.
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No gas stations and no cell service anywhere along this route — fuel up and tell someone your plan before starting. A Forest Service road, not a state highway, so winter maintenance is not guaranteed the way it is on OR 242 or US 20. Check current access · Reviewed 2026-09-23
Planning the drive
Aufderheide runs 143 counted bends over 57.6 miles, a moderate 2.5 per mile density and a gentle-by-Cascades-standards 6.8% maximum grade — this is a long, sustained forest byway along the North Fork Willamette and McKenzie Rivers, not a technical switchback climb. The National Scenic Byway designation reflects the old-growth forest and river scenery more than the driving itself.
There are no gas stations and no cell service anywhere on this 58-mile route — fuel up and tell someone your plan before starting, the same way you would for genuine backcountry driving. As a Forest Service road rather than a state highway, winter maintenance isn't guaranteed the way it is on a numbered route like OR 242 or US 20. Eugene, Cascades & Coast: Aufderheide Drive (Forest Service Rd 19)
Roads to connect
Driving notes updated .
Road shape
- Length
- 57.6 mi
- Bends
- 143
- Switchbacks
- 10
- Bends per mile
- 2.5
- Turning per mile
- 256°
- Curviest rank
- 120of 165
Measured from the OpenStreetMap centreline at a 20 m sampling step — road shape only, not a safety or speed judgement. How bends are counted.
Elevation
- Total climb
- 7,034ft
- Climb per mile
- 122ft
- Highest point
- 3,751ft
- Steepest grade
- 6.8%
Sampled every 100 m from USGS 10 m elevation data, a public-domain federal dataset. Total climb counts vertical change in both directions, so it does not depend on which way you drive. How elevation is measured.
Speed limits
Varies
Unverified
Check posted signs along the road.
No reliable posted limit was found for this selected section. Follow current signs.
Posted signs always govern. How speed evidence is handled.
Sources
Difficulty 1/3 (Relaxed) is our editorial rating of width, bends and sightlines; “Medium speed” describes character, not a target speed. Full method. Identified from:
- Travel Oregon: Aufderheide National Scenic Byway
- Wikipedia: West Cascades Scenic Byway
- OpenStreetMap road data (19 ways in this trace)
Reviewed 2026-09-23. The trace shows selected road sections, not a navigation route.
Roads nearby
Distances are approximate straight lines between road centers, not driving distances or direct connections.